The present invention relates to the field of chewing gum. More particularly, the present invention relates to sheeted chewing gum which includes more than one component, such as different colors, flavors and/or sweeteners.
It is generally known that novel forms of chewing gum are popular with consumers. Over the years, several novel chewing gum and confection products have been introduced. These novel products have utilized various combinations of flavors, types, shapes, texture and or packaging to interest the consumer. For example, a product sold under the trademark "BUBBLE TAPE.RTM." bubble gum and made by the process described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,175 is a six foot roll of bubble gum rolled up in a tape.
Other novel chewing gum products include the product described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,902,519 is commercially available under the name "Thumb Suckers.RTM." confectionery. This product includes a hard candy sucker in an elastic mold with a bubble gum seal at the bottom of the mold. Still another example is a product known as "Blow Pops" confectionery which includes a mass of chewing gum surrounded by a hard candy sucker. Another example of a novel product is that sold under the name "Tidal Wave.RTM." confectionery which is a cube of chewing gum with a hollow center filled with a liquid confection, which liquid confection typically has a recognizable flavor, different from or the same as the chewing gum.
Various attempts to achieve novel appearances of a chewing gum product have been made. For example, several colorants have been used to achieve desired color characteristics. Also, a product sold under the name "Fruit Stripes.RTM." chewing gum by Beechnut is printed with a dye so as to have colored stripes running diagonally across a stick of chewing gum.